No. 9 Kentucky Wins Four Event Titles, Drops Tight Contest to No. 3 LSU
LEXINGTON, Ky. – In front of a season high crowd of 6,098 members of Big Blue Nation, No. 9 Kentucky (5-4. 2-3 SEC) scored its fourth straight 197+ score and won event titles on all four apparatus, but dropped a tight 197.200-197.075 battle to No. 3 LSU (8-2, 5-1 SEC) inside Historic Memorial Coliseum Friday night.
Isabella Magnelli won titles on vault and beam to increase her career total to 22, while Delaynee Rodriguez earned her first career win on bars and Creslyn Brose won her first event title of the season on floor.
The Cats started on vault, posting a 49.175 in the opening rotation. Magnelli’s stuck front handspring pike half scored a 9.925 to lead the way for Kentucky. Senior All-American Makenzie Wilson also stuck her front handspring pike half to post a 9.900. Skylar Killough-Wilhelm scored a 9.825 and Delaynee Rodriguez delivered a stuck Yurchenko Full to match her season best 9.800. Ryan Noonan and Cecily Rizo each scored 9.725.
On bars, Kentucky scored a 49.150, led by Rodriguez’s 9.875 performance that earned the sophomore her second career event title and first on the uneven bars. Killough-Wilhelm and Hailey Davis each delivered 9.850s. Jillian Procasky stuck her double layout dismount to earn a 9.800 and Cecily Rizo counted her score of 9.775 in her season debut on the apparatus. The Cats dropped a 9.750 from Isabella Rivelli in the leadoff spot.
Kentucky earned its second-best event score on the evening with a 49.325 on the balance beam. Magnelli—ranked No. 1 in the SEC and No. 2 in the NCAA on the event—delivered another spectacular performance, earning her 11th career score of 9.950 on the apparatus. The fifth year has not gone below 9.900 on the event this season. Creslyn Brose matched her career high with a phenomenal 9.925 routine in the second position. Killough-Wilhelm matched her season best score with another 9.900 performance and the Cats also received scores of 9.800 from Rodriguez and 9.750 from Sharon Lee and Chesney Bennett.
The Cats capped the night on the floor exercise, posting the highest team score of the night with a 49.425. Brose won her first event title this season, as the All-American scored a season best 9.950. Davis continued her hot streak on floor, scoring a 9.925 to extend her streak of 9.9+ performances on the event to 18 of the last 19 meets. Magnelli matched her season best score with a 9.875, Killough-Wilhelm added a 9.850 and Rodriguez posted a 9.825. Procasky’s score of 9.775 was dropped.
The Cats will hit the road for the first time in three weeks with an away contest at No. 12 Georgia on Sunday, March 2 at 6 p.m. ET. The contest from Stegeman Coliseum in Athens will be televised on the SEC Network.
For the latest on the Kentucky gymnastics team, follow @UKGymnastics on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook, as well as on the web at UKAthletics.com.
